Bought unseen

Oh dear, I have let my impatience lead me into a rushed decision to buy a series 11a off eBay without seeing it.

I have wanted a tax exempt series 11a - preferably white - preferably with a safari roof - restored - all for less than £2,000

I saw this one:

eBay.co.uk: Land Rover Series 2A TAX EXEMPT 1971 J reg (item 180130352678 end time 15-Jun-07 16:03:21 BST)

I have seen so few that ticked all the boxes and this one seemed so close to what I wanted. I would have prefered a LR engine but gather the ford is not a bad option. The seller had a few folks planning to view and in a rush of enthusiasm I agreed a price and paid a deposit by paypal there and then.

The story is that the Land Rover was 'restored' in Yorkshire. The current owner had it transported to London as he thought it would be exempt from the London congestion charge - it turns out he was wrong so now wants to sell it. It is in an underground car park in Chelsea - it really is a Chelsea tractor..

So I have bought it but not seen it. Anyone want to take a view based on the pics and the short description as to whether it will be a good bet?

Cheers, Jim

All depends what he said to you on the phone, that none of us know. To be fair, it does look nice, and the chassis looks good - if the rest of the chassis is the same (though then again, what condition is it like behind the underseal). And is that carpet stuck down? Hopefully the bulkhead has been repaired well. I'll only but landys myself with galvanised chassis', but that's just me. Means I'll never have to worry about that part.

I've bought landys on ebay and been lucky, but I would never put a deposit down on one before seeing it. I would just say, I'll be up today with the money.

If it's how it looks though, it does look nice. The chassis appears to be good. The engine bits all appear to be neatly done cables tidyed etc. which suggests time and effort has gone into it. Painted inside and out. Gone to the effort of rock sliders. I think you'll be happy!

Looks great!

First impresions do look good. When are you collecting it?

I am going to London on Monday and then driving it 130 miles back to Staffordshire - we should know each other pretty well by the time we get home.

I hope the carpets come out - I like to be able to get a hoise onto the foot wells to get the mud off...

The bloke selling it sounded genuine. I don't think he knew much about Land Rovers but had paid £2500 for it and was just looking to get rid. £2000 was what we settled on. It does have 12 months MOT and he read a list of jobs that were done 5 months ago. These included new brake hoses, clutch, hub seals, exhaust, waxoiling, servicing... and so on.

I plan to put a canvas roof on it - anyone want to swap a truck cab for a canvas roof?

Cheers

Looks well smart to me. Someone has put a lot of time and effort into it. Get prepared for some spannering though....Good luck.
PS The V6 engines are great, I had them in TVR's previously

I was watching that one it does look nice and I hope it turns out that way. 2 grand is getting a bit close to dealer forecourt money mind.

Well i can assure that engine is bloody good although the exhaust manifolds you do have to be careful with if they are the modern remade ones as pin holed start to appear very quickly so if its got the old ones make sure u keep up or gett um repaired prop if they are ****!
a very good little motor, and the randy itself dont look to bad at all does it may i ask why white??? need any help with then engine pm and i will give u my number

White because I lived in Africa for 8 years and drove a white series 11a - it's a nostalgia trip!

well, i think i might have risked £2k on that one, had i been looking - looks very very good.

Looks ok, worth 2k

hmmm, Just look at his feedback, only 51, and already has 96.4%. (and not 100%)

Still, good luck with it

I made it back from London to Staffordshire (140 miles) but had a few problems.

The Landy looks pretty but the paint job is not A1 - inside they have painted over some flaky bits - the outside is good though. Underneath looks tidy - a repair here and there and who know what is under the waxoil. Brakes work well. First impressions are quite good.

The first and second gears are near impossible without crunching the gearbox - what is the technique for this? I know there is no synchro but it just wont go into first without a crunch..

The temperature guage was getting hotter and hotter and bordering on the red line. I stopped a took a look and saw there was a kenlowe fan controlled manually by a switch on the dash. This helped a little but the temp stayed high until it rained and this somehow helped. This is a little worrying.

20 miles from home she broke down. I had been using the wipers in the rain and they were getting slower and slower. Eventually she just stopped. No bang just the engine stopped. I discovered the battery was flat and guessed that the fuel pump wasn't woking. The rescue service arrived and with a jump start she fired up. A few miles down the road she stopped again and I went the rest of the way home with the booster fixed to the battery and the AA in pursuit. I think the alternator is cooked. I guess I should take it off and try to get it repaired.

Then there is the overheating to think about..

One last thing - the engine sounds like a lawn mower. There is no purring - it goes pap pap pa not vroooom.

I am relieved to be home.

How many times have i heard that story (ask any landy owner and they all had some problems getting home)
Dead bat = probably dynamo (may not have been converted to Alternator) quite cheep from pads or crads. if it is you may want to read up on fitting a alternator.
The fan should be controled by a thermostat switch some where, ask Kenlow in Burchetts green near Marlow.
Its a 2a gear box ie no syncromech on 1st and 2nd gears, i afraid you will need to learn to double de clutch.
Sorry cant help about the motor its not a standard 2.25.

dont forget its an Ford Essex V6, Clivees

I'm not too hot on this subject - Can you explain more what is meant by -'probably dynamo (may not have been converted to Alternator'

Is the dynamo in the alternator?

Cheers,Jim

Well done for making it home in one piece anyway, eventually.

The dynamo does the same job as an alternator

The Mad Hat Man said:

dont forget its an Ford Essex V6, Clivees

Click to expand...

Good point

Forget the dynamo bit

ere Clivees - is yu an eggspurt on 2.5 petrol lumps? coz if so i mite need ya help ?

Nope never worked on a 2.5 but i'm up for learning if you need a hand.
I would guess that it wont be that different from the 2.25 petrol.
PM me if you need a hand, Im free most Friday evenings.